Original article featured in Cambridge Agenda magazine December 2011. Photography courtesy of The White Company.

Victoria Harrison of Angel + Blume counts down the days until Christmas and talks you through what you need to do in the run up to present your home in the best light on the big day.

Four weeks to go - Clear up the clutter This is the best time to have a big tidy up of the main living areas in your home. There’s nothing like an approaching deadline for motivation, so use this opportunity to fix all those little things that you’ve been putting off all year. You want your home to look its best for guests but you need to start with a clean slate before you add layers of Christmas decorations. This is the time to tidy out cupboards, store away unused items and sweep away all the clutter that’s been accumulating all year.

Three weeks to go - Dress the guest rooms If you get your guest rooms ready now it’s one less thing to worry about in the week leading up to Christmas when time seems to just evaporate. Make your guest rooms feel cosy and inviting by layering up the bed with soft blankets and throws so your visitors have somewhere to retreat to. It’s nice to make the rooms feel festive too; you don’t have to go overboard but a Christmas cushion or twinkly fairy lights make all the difference, especially for children.

Two weeks to go - Plan your dining room Your dining table will be the centrepiece of the big day, and planning it now will prevent panic the night before. Do you have the right amount of crockery and glassware? Have you made place cards for your guests? Do you need to invest in some new table linen? Make a list of everything you will need on the day, right down to the small things like candles for the centre of the table and ensure you have everything in stock.

One week to go - Festive scent and accessories Now is the time to relax and enjoy all your hard work. Scent is incredibly evocative, never more so than at Christmas, so I like to stock up on good quality festive candles and fill a vase with armfuls of evergreen and eucalyptus so guests are greeted with festive cheer as soon as they arrive. Some people dress their tree weeks before the big day but I like to wait until the week before and spend an evening putting up all my favourite decorations, dressing the tree and wrapping presents. Waiting until the week before to put up your tree also ensures that the delicious pine smell of a freshly cut Christmas tree lasts right through into Boxing Day.